Sometimes, it’s quite the struggle to figure out what to watch on Hulu or Netflix. It almost makes you nostalgic for the days when you could turn on the TV and flip through channels aimlessly. Now, Toronto-based Secret Location has released a free Web and iOS app called DitchTV that serves up YouTube content using a combination of old-school channel surfing and gesture controls.
The human-curated feed offers randomized video, skipping a third of the way into the clip to deliver greater context off the bat. The videos are selected based on a variety of categories, which include Sports, Pop Culture, Comedy, Movies, Travel, and Nature — among several others. The Discover section is less focused, presenting all kinds of different clips to make your viewing experience less predictable.
Navigating the interface is simple and involves basic gestures to keep video coming. Swiping left or right changes videos on the current channel. Swiping up and down flips channels. A two-finger swipe up or down jumps categories, while a two-finger drag left or right scrubs through the video timeline.
DitchTV, television evolved.If Songza and YouTube got together and had beautiful babies, they would produce DitchTV. A fresh new way to discover the best online videos faster than ever. Channel surf the web from Cyanide & Happiness to VICE and everything in between. This is #DitchTV, television evolved.
Posted by DitchTV on Wednesday, October 14, 2015
The length of clips also varies considerably, with some as short as a minute or less, while others are more than 10 minutes long. DitchTV doesn’t list or note the duration beyond the timeline at the bottom.
“DitchTV is what we think YouTube would have been, if it had evolved from broadcast TV,” said Ryan Andal, who created the app. “When you land on the site, instead of looking at thumbnails and unhelpful descriptions, you’re directly immersed in the video. We jump right into the meat of the content so you can intuitively decide if want to surf or continue watching, or scrub back to the beginning.”
There is no Android app currently, though one is reportedly coming soon. The iOS app does natively support AirPlay, and the iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch can still function as a remote. There isn’t much more to the app than its basic purpose as a way to discover new content, or to pass the time without bothering to search for anything specific.
If you’re intrigued, you can check it out on the Web or in the iOS App Store here.
Two new highly requested iCloud plugins just got added to ChatGPT, giving people who rely on Apple’s Mail and Calendar services a way to search emails, check appointments, and manage their schedules directly through the chatbot.
The integration is rolling out to all ChatGPT plans, including the free tier. You can access it on the web, desktop, and iOS.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.
The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.